Pumping for Information

"Patrol Bureau, Hu Guangzhong."

Xiao Wang looked at the note's contents. He hadn't expected it to be someone from the Patrol Bureau again.

"Could the bombing really have been planned by the Patrol Bureau? That makes no sense. My parents were ordinary people. Unless they were trying to eliminate someone specific and wiped out the entire building in the process?"

Xiao Wang thought it over. He wasn't sure. His memories of childhood were somewhat blurry, but one thing was certain: an explosion that had killed twenty-four people had been completely swept under the rug.

Xiao Wang looked again at the name on the note and committed it to memory. Then he crumpled the note into a ball, put it into his mouth, and swallowed it.

Only after swallowing it did he go upstairs and return home.

Zhou Zhengxiong and Qin Fengying had finished dinner and cleaned up by the time Xiao Wang entered.

"Have you eaten? If not, I'll heat something up for you," Qin Fengying asked.

"I already ate, Auntie."

"You should try not to stay out at night in the future. The Outer City isn't safe, you know."

"I know. Don't worry, Auntie."

After a few brief pleasantries, Xiao Wang went to his room and locked the door.

He hurriedly changed out of his clothes, afraid there might be bloodstains he had missed. Then he tucked the dagger back onto his person, went to the bathroom, washed the blood off it, and returned to his room, locking the door again.

Xiao Wang checked the color of the bead in his mind. It was bright red.

This was the damage contributed by Cheng Hu's punch.

Without hesitation, Xiao Wang quickly sat cross-legged, practiced his breathing, and circulated the breathing technique. It was only deep into the night that he finished converting the damage within the bead. At the same time, he felt that his control over his breathing had improved a little.

"It's a shame I don't have anyone to spar with. Otherwise, I could turn those insights into progress faster."

As Xiao Wang thought this, an idea suddenly flashed through his mind. Maybe I should just move into the martial arts school. If I lived with Master and my fellow disciples, I could spar whenever I wanted.

"But then the costs might go up again—not just lodging, but food too. Sigh, money."

After lamenting over money, Xiao Wang soon drifted off to sleep.

Early the next morning, Xiao Wang arrived at school. He did not go to his own classroom, instead heading straight to the entrance of another class.

An Han's class.

An Han's class focused on academic subjects, and it was mostly girls.

The moment the handsome, faintly aloof-looking Xiao Wang appeared at the door, he immediately drew quite a few gazes.

But they all knew he had come to see An Han.

Over the past three years, the two had sought each other out countless times. The students in both classes had long since grown accustomed to it.

At first, they had thought the two were a couple. Later, though, they realized that they were not. Still, the two were close, and as for what exactly their relationship was, opinions varied. It had always been one of Seventh High's unsolved mysteries.

The moment An Han saw Xiao Wang, she immediately put down her book and left the classroom.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah. I need to tell you something."

Xiao Wang looked around, then headed toward the deserted end of the corridor.

An Han followed behind him. From his actions, she guessed that he wanted to discuss something secret, so she also looked around cautiously.

Once they reached the end of the corridor and confirmed no one was nearby, Xiao Wang looked at An Han. "We found the second person."

An Han's eyes flickered. "Are you sure?"

"I shouldn't be wrong. And..."

Xiao Wang told An Han everything: Hu Guangzhong's name and identity, as well as the information that he might be transferred to the Inner City in a month.

After hearing this, An Han murmured, "One month. That means we only have one month."

"To be safe, yes."

An Han thought for a while, then lifted her head to look at Xiao Wang. "Xiao Wang, I want you to help... Forget it. What should we do next? When are you planning to make a move?"

"I'm planning to investigate his exact identity first. We need to figure out the details before we can act."

That was Xiao Wang's answer. He felt that An Han still had something she wanted to say to him. He had sensed it last time too, but since she would not say it, he did not want to press her.

"Fine. We'll ask around separately. When we act this time, you have to bring me along."

"I know."

Just as the two were speaking, Guan Chaoyang spotted them in the corridor and walked straight over.

"Wang, I was wondering why I couldn't find you at the training hall. Turns out you were over here flirting."

When An Han saw Guan Chaoyang approaching, she nodded to Xiao Wang and headed back toward her classroom.

As she passed Guan Chaoyang—

"Beautiful An, don't leave. Let's chat."

An Han ignored Guan Chaoyang and went straight back into the classroom.

Guan Chaoyang walked up beside Xiao Wang. "What exactly is going on between you and Beautiful An? If you're a couple, I've never seen you even hold hands. If you're not, why are you two always getting all lovey-dovey in deserted corners?"

Xiao Wang did not answer Guan Chaoyang's question. "This is a first. You actually came to school early and went looking for me at the training hall."

"There's not much time left before the exams. I need to practice my shooting too, right? If I can't get into the Patrol Bureau, my chances of surviving on the front lines will be better, right?"

As Xiao Wang listened, a thought suddenly occurred to him. Wasn't Guan Chaoyang aiming to work for the Patrol Bureau? Maybe he knew something about Hu Guangzhong.

"You really want to work for the Patrol Bureau that badly?"

"Of course. Tell me, in the Outer City, for a poor student like me, is there any better place to go?"

"There really isn't."

"Exactly. Besides, guns are cool, aren't they? Why don't you take the military police academy exam too? Martial arts has no future. No matter how strong you are, can you dodge my bullets? We can apply to the military police academy together. Then the Twin Guns, Guan and Xiao, will be invincible."

Xiao Wang ignored him and pressed further. "Since you want to work for the Patrol Bureau so badly, do you know much about it?"

"More or less. I can learn the specifics after I get in."

"More or less? Sounds like you know quite a bit."

Guan Chaoyang glanced at Xiao Wang. "You want to join the Patrol Bureau too? Makes sense, though. The Patrol Bureau recruits a small number of martial arts graduates every year. You'd still have a chance if you took the martial arts academy exam."

"Tell me about it, then. What's the Patrol Bureau like?"

"Sure. Today, I'll educate you about Mount Yuan City's biggest gang in the Outer City. No, wait, its biggest violent institution." As he spoke, Guan Chaoyang draped an arm over Xiao Wang's shoulder.

"The Outer City Patrol Bureau has one chief and two deputy chiefs. Under them are five patrol squads, meaning five squad captains and five vice-captains. Under the vice-captains are team leaders. Let me tell you, anyone who can become a team leader is no ordinary person. They're all elite graduates from military police academies. Though I've heard some of them graduated from your martial arts academies too."

"So it sounds like you know all these elites pretty well?"

"Not really. I've only heard their names. Guan Zhongnan, Chu Xianchao, Wen Lujia, Hu Guangzhong, and so on—they're all top-notch fighters. It's not just firearms. They're no slouches in hand-to-hand combat either."

When Xiao Wang heard the name Hu Guangzhong, his gaze sharpened. But he did not rush to ask about him. Instead, he asked about another name first. "Wen Lujia? A female captain?"

"A vice-captain, but she's not far from becoming a captain. Don't tell me you've never heard of Wen Lujia?"